Disability and Veterans – Disability in America Series

September 2016

The chart and map below explore the 2010-2014 American Community Survey 5-year data (Table C21007) disability estimates by veteran status and county type (OMB county classifications). The ACS asks a set of disability indicator questions to determine disability, and if a respondent can answer “yes” to any disability question they are classified as having a disability. The data below are for ages 18 and over.

Chart 7. Disability Rate by Veteran Status and County Type. This chart shows the rate of disability among veterans and non-veterans split by county type. These data indicate that veterans report higher rates of disability than non-veterans across all county types. Further, disability rates are higher in more rural areas across both veterans and non-veterans. Non-veterans reported lower levels of disability (13.1% in metropolitan, 17.6% in micropolitan, 19.8% in noncore) compared to veterans (26%, 31%, 34%). These ACS data suggest that disability rates are higher among veterans and in more rural areas.